Smile for Me
by Hatake Sakino
Summary: my first fan fic. just a short story of how i pictured the narcissistic Naru if he were to confess his love to Mai : Rated T just to be safe.


this is my first fan fic so don't be expecting too much. if i get positive response however, i may continue to write. :)

Disclaimer: i don't own ghost hunt or any of the characters.

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"Calm down. And find your footing on that ladder again."

Mai nodded and gulp down her throat before putting her right foot on the ladder. She tried climbing up but the ladder instantly gave way.

"Naruuu….!"

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"Mai"

"Mai."

"Mai!"

Naru even shook Mai by her shoulders but the girl remained unconscious. She was lying on her face so Naru turn her around and that's when he saw it. Blood. It was oozing out of her head.

_Did she fall head first?_

Immediately, he took out his handkerchief and pressed on her wound to make it stop. At the amount of blood seeping out from the wound she's going to have serious blood lost if he didn't help her soon enough.

_Idiot! If you had let go of my hand I might be able to help you now._

Minutes passed and no one seemed to realize they were down the sewer. The only light source had become dimmer as well. Night is approaching. The pressure he applied on her head wound seemed to help a little. He looked closely at her face and realized that even in the dim light he could see that she was pale. He lifted her up and held her close to his chest. Her hair was soaked in blood and the liquid was dripping on the floor.

_Hang on Mai. Lin will come here soon enough. Just hang on a little bit longer. _

He watched as the blood dripped on the ground. A drop after another. Why was it dripping so much? He wished he could stop it. He stared at the pool of blood forming on the ground. Another drop went into the pool. And he swore he heard a sound with it. Frowning, he watched closely at the motion. There…another drop. But no sound. Weird.

_Plup!_

That's not from blood. He turned to look for the source of the sound but there was water everywhere. The sound probably came from a leak from an old pipe line. He turned his attention back to the girl he was holding and pressed harder on the wound. Closing his eyes, he prayed that his assistant would find them soon.

Plup…

Plup..

Plup!

The dripping sound became louder. No…it's not louder. It's moving closer to him. Whatever it is, it's definitely not from a leaking pipeline. Then, he felt it. A presence. He turned just in time to see a glow slowly emerging from the wall opposite him. He felt his heart skip a beat.

_Relax Shibuya. If you panic, you'll only be digging your own grave._

He took a deep breath and calmed himself. He looked at the wall again and the glow now has hair. More of the _thing_ came out from the wall. Slowly he could he see it, the head of a woman. Her eyes were staring intently into his eyes and he could feel her murderous intent from her gaze alone. Strong…but not strong enough. Just as he thought, there was no way it could gather its strength from one night and do anything to harm him. The woman came closer to him as more of her body emerged from the wall. She put her hand into her mouth and pulled out a crescent shaped cleaver. The weapon was aimed at him. Her glow illuminated the dark place as she came closer to him. She lifted the weapon inches away from his face, ready to strike.

"Naru!"

Naru glanced at the hole they fell from and saw his assistant looking down. He turned to look back at the woman.

She's gone.

"Naru!! Are you down there?!"

"I'm here. I need a rope."

Lin came a couple of minutes later with a rope. He went down and helped to hold Mai as John and Bou pulled them out. Naru said there's no need for him to go down to helped him before he realized that he had injured his arm during the fall. It didn't hurt before though. Lin commented that he must have been worried over Mai that he forgot his own wound. So much for staying calm.

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Slowly, she opened her eyes. She squinted at the bright lights above her.

"Mai!"

She tried to speak but she couldn't make a sound. Her throat was scratchy. The person calling out her name was looking down at her. Her vision was too blurry to tell who it was.

"Wat…ter"

The word came out broken. How long was she asleep? The person looking down at her reacted immediately to pour her a glass of water. He lifted her head up and brought the glass to her lips. She drank but choked at the amount of water he fed her in one gulp. She coughed and the guy pulled the glass away immediately.

"Sorry"

This time, he brought the glass to her lips and slowly poured the water into her mouth. She drank enough to lubricate her throat. He took the glass away and put her back on the bed carefully. She looked at him and realized that her vision was clearer. It was Naru.

"What happened?"

Her voice was croaky but better.

"You fell into the sewer and hurt your head pretty bad. You're at the hospital now."

She looked around to confirm his words. She was in a white room with a dresser at one end. A set of chairs and coffee table was filling the spacious room. A blanket and a pillow were placed at the chair and the coffee table was littered with papers. Someone practically lived here. There's even a television hung at the wall. It was a private first class room. She looked to her sides and noticed a pack of blood hanging from a stand.

"You lost a lot blood. They are giving you blood transfusions."

"Who's paying?"

Her question irritated him. He knew she was going to ask something like that.

"There's no need for you to think of that right now."

"I can't afford…"

"You got hurt while trying to solve this case so your medical bills will fall under the company's expenses."

"But I…"

"If Ayako or Hara-san got hurt I would've paid for them as well. I'm not giving you special treatments so rest assured."

"I don't need the chairs and television."

"They are for me. Not you."

Mai wanted to ask why but decided against it. Naru on the other hand, excused himself to get some coffee. He was obviously tired. He hadn't had enough sleep and the pressure has taken a toll at him. Even Mai could tell from the tall tale signs on his eyes. She looked at the chair with the coffee table. The jacket she saw earlier was definitely Naru's. Did he work here the whole time she was unconscious? Mai decided to try to get up. She sat up slowly and she could feel the blood in her veins rushing to her head. It was a little dizzy but she could manage. She let her legs hung on the side of the bed and slowly pushed herself off the bed. Holding on the bed rails, she tried to walk but as soon as she put her weight onto her legs, the dizziness became unbearable. Her body reacted to the pain and without thinking, she let go of the rail she was holding to hold her head and her legs instantly gave way. She could feel herself falling forward but surprisingly she didn't hit the hard floor. Someone broke her fall. A pair of hands lifted her up and put her back on the bed. Once the pain subsided, she opened her eyes again. Naru was staring down at her, angrily. Mai quickly thought of an excuse.

"I wanted…"

"You almost make me spill my coffee."

"So…sorry"

Naru exhaled and sat back at the chair next to her bed. She looked at him but he wasn't angry anymore. His expression was somewhat disappointed and relieved. He looked at her intently which caused Mai to squirm.

"You had to undergo a surgery to fix the wound in your head. You've been out for almost two days. You got me worried the whole time so the least you could do now is be a good girl and stay in bed."

"You were worried?"

Naru didn't answer. But knowing Naru, not saying no was his way of saying yes. She felt a blush across her cheek.

"Did you make your own base here while I was out?"

Again, he was quiet.

"Thank you…um…for staying"

He was irresponsive. All he did was flipped through the file and sipped from his coffee. Mai wasn't sure he was listening to her or not.

"You look tired. You should go."

"I'm fine."

"The file you're holding is the case's file right? I'm sure they need you at the base. You don't have to stay here anymore."

"I want to stay."

Now this made Mai raised her eyebrows.

"Why…why would you want to stay?"

Naru closed the file he was holding with a thump and caused Mai to jump. Just the kind of thing he would do when he had an answer to a case. He looked at her and spoke casually.

"When you got hurt, I was scared. I was scared even more when they told me you had to have a surgery. I realized that you must mean something to me for me to feel like that."

"…"

"I figured out that I like you."

Mai's jaw dropped at his words. She felt butterflies doing dances in her stomach and her mind went blank for a second to digest his words. Her heart was pumping more than enough blood to her body. She looked at him but his face was just the same as it always been. Emotionless. Is this one of her _dreams?_ No, it couldn't be. Naru in her dreams would be smiling but this Naru isn't. This is real.

"I…um…I thought you like Masako"

"I don't. I like you."

Again, her jaw dropped. Nevertheless, his expression unchanged. How could you tell someone you like them and be so calm about it? What is he thinking? Is he screwing with her? He probably knew she liked him and tried to make fun of it. He had a sick sense of humor sometimes. He did lie to her about the camera she broke to get her to work for him. Determined not to be cheated, she decided to play along.

"Kiss me…"

Naru shot her a look. Now, there's an expression to it. He stares at her. A 'don't mess with me' stare.

"Seriously…?"

"Seriously, if you really like me then kiss me."

Naru got up from his chair and looked down at her. She could tell he was anxious himself. Without thinking, he bent over closer to her. Mai closed her eyes in anticipation. She could feel his breath on her lips. His face was so close to her as he gave her a peck on the forehead.

"Wha…"

Naru went back to his seat to review the data in his file. Now she really felt cheated. He obviously outsmarted her; like he usually did. Hope he didn't figure out she was expecting him to kiss her on the lips.

"Did you expect me to kiss you on the lips?"

"No! Why would I…?"

"You closed your eyes and all."

She swore she could see him grinning before he turned around. She felt her face turned as red as tomato from the embarrassment and anger. How could he? Her head started to throb in pain. Maybe getting all emotional wasn't so healthy after a surgery. She lied down and calmed herself. It'll just hurt more if she got angry. God, please make him leave today and make Bou-san come instead.

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A week later…

"Mai, tea."

His assistant went to the pantry and he could hear the sounds she made as she made him his tea. Mai was discharged a few days later after she awoke and the case was also solved. Things were back to normal. Well, almost. Mai barely spoke to him after the incident. He had asked her if she was still angry at him but she assured him that she's not. Obviously, that was a lie. Why else would she be quiet around him? It amuses him seeing her like that. He always loved taunting her with his antics and watched her overreact but maybe this was pushing things a bit too far.

As for Mai, after the big 'I like you' confession, he seemed surprisingly normal. One would thought after saying to someone you like them, you'll take her out for at least a drink. But not her narcissist boss. Maybe he was screwing with her. He probably was joking and wanted to see if her brain was functioning normally after the surgery. Then that kiss scene after that. That definitely added up to the theory. And to think that for a moment she really thought that Naru liked her; she was so naïve. Mai exhaled a breath as she poured his tea in a cup.

Mai walked to his desk, head low with a tea cup in her hand. She placed the tea carefully on his desk and turned around to leave.

"Mai."

Mai didn't even turn around. She stopped walking though, indicating she's listening to whatever her boss needed to tell her. She just didn't want to look him in the face anymore.

"Mai, turn around."

"I'm listening."

"Look at me."

"If you're not going to tell me what you want to tell me then I need to excuse myself. Those stacks of papers are not going to settle by themselves."

"Those stacks of papers can wait."

Naru waited for Mai to turn around but guessing from her tone she's probably not going to. He got up from his seat and walked to her instead. He turned her around, facing him.

"Are you still mad at me?"

"No, I'm not."

Her tone was clear. It was a statement, a warning for him not to bring up the issue again.

"If you're not angry then why are you avoiding me?"

Mai took a deep breath and exhaled. She needed to get herself together. The last thing she wanted right now was her to be emotionally driven and Naru took the advantage to outsmart her. She spoke softly now.

"I was angry but not anymore, okay? Can we drop this? I got work to do."

"I…I wasn't lying when I said like you."

"Well, that's good. Because I like you too. As my boss."

She threw him a fake smile and headed for the door. If he wanted to joke around he's got to do better than that. No way she's buying that crap again. Naru quickly grabbed her by the arm and spun her around. The next thing he knew, his lips were already touching hers. A shocked Mai however pushed him away.

"What the hell are you doing?!"

"I…"

"Don't screw with me!!"

"I'm not screwing with you!!"

His shout which was probably three times louder than hers echoed inside the room. Mai was stunned to see Naru losing his temper like that. She stood there, too scared to even move her finger. Time seemed to stop as they stood in silence. Naru himself was shocked by his own reaction. He didn't actually have this in mind when he decided to confront her today.

"I'm not used to…rejection. Sorry."

Mai blinked at him. Probably a sign that she understood what he meant.

"Look, let me explain myself. When you ask me to kiss you the other day; I wasn't expecting it so I didn't quite know how to react. I couldn't bring myself to kiss you so that's why I did what I did."

Mai gave no response. Her hands were upfront, a sign of protectiveness against her surroundings. Naru's eyes soften seeing her tense like that.

"I'm sorry I shouted, but I'm not going to hurt you."

She nodded and put her hands down slowly.

"Come here."

Mai raised her eyebrows in question. What is he doing? Seeing Mai was not going to move from her spot, Naru walked over to her instead. He pulled her to him and hugged her. Mai stood stiff in his arms at first but slowly loosened up.

"When we were at the hospital, why did you make fun of me?"

"You were blushing and it's cute. I couldn't help myself."

Mai smiled at his statement. She could feel her cheeks turning red.

"I'm blushing now. Are you going to make fun of me again?"

Naru pulled himself away and looked at her. There, her blush, as cute as always. He answered a simple no then bent down to give her a proper kiss on the lips. When they broke apart, her cheeks were twice as red. Just looking at that could melt his heart away. She had no idea what power she had over him, and she shouldn't know. Or else he might be losing that pet name she gave him.

"That one is to fulfill your request back at the hospital."

Mai smiled at him. She never pictured him in this way. Never pictured him doing things for others. Maybe she should take advantage of the moment and had another thing done for her.

"Can I have one more?"

"You mean the kiss?"

"No! I mean the request."

"What?"

"Smile for me…"

Naru stared at her blankly.

"I can't just smile for no reason."

"Do you have to have a reason?"

"Yea"

"But in my psychic dreams you'll always smiles for me."

"You'll only dream of me when it's psychic related?"

"No, I dream of you in regular dreams as well but you'll only smile at me during the psychic ones."

Naru frowned and backed away from her. Suddenly, his face was all serious again. He was thinking of something. Mai was confused and worried that maybe she had said something to upset him. Not a good move considering that they just made up.

"Naru-chan, it's just a dream…"

He was too absorbed in his thoughts he barely heard her. How come he had different attitudes of the dream of the same person? Dreams revolved around the subconscious mind of a person. A dream of the same thing has different outcome with different people. Two people might be dreaming about the same thing but that didn't mean the view between the two is the same. And that's because each person has his or her own subconscious mind. But for a person to be having different views on the same person in separate dreams, that was highly unlikely. It's possible though if the person was presented with two subconscious mind, which was absurd.

"Naru!"

_How long had she been calling him?_

"What?"

"Forget the request. I was just joking around. I understand if…"

"Mai, have you ever had the same thing that you have with me happened to other people in your dreams?"

"What do you mean?"

"Have you ever dreamed about other people besides me in whom they had two personalities in two separate dreams?"

"Um…no. I don't think so."

Why would it be just me? Why would she have different views on me? And to think that the differences only occur in psychic and non-psychic dreams? What is the difference between the two dreams? Regular dreams involve only the subconscious mind and that's why every one's capable of having it. But psychic dreams involves spirits therefore those with no psychic abilities weren't able to have this type of dreams. How are the human Naru and the spirit Naru are different from each other? Do you even have a spirit if you're still alive? Wait, don't tell me she's…

Naru stared at her. Mai, who had been watching him, was not quite sure how to react. She ended up smiling meekly at him.

"How long have you been dreaming about the smiling me?"

"Um…since I met you. Is there something wrong?"

That makes sense. The dreams only started after she met me. It's _him_ after all. He's been guiding her all along, protecting her at the same time. Gene…

"Naru, I think I'll go back to my work. You can call me if you need anything."

Mai was about to leave when Naru called her. And when she turned around, Naru was smiling at her. A real smile. An honest, friendly smile that caused her heart to skip a beat. As she expected, he looked sweet smiling his heart out like that. She can't help but smiled back at him.

"I found a reason to smile."

Tears built up in her eyes. It was a onetime shot to see him like that. And she was grateful. Naru walked over to her and pulled her away from the door by the waist.

"Why don't you take your mind off your work today and tell me about your dreams instead?"

_sorry if you feel that this is so un-Naru. i wasn't serious when i was writing this but it turned out okay so i decided to post it and see what people think. _


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